The guardian and the guarded
by kimicatdemon
Summary: -LUMINOUS PLOT SPOILERS- A backstory of Luminous and Lucia.
1. Chapter 1

A disaster was the best way to summarize the situation. The place was ruined. The survivors that made it through okay were all packing. Some were heading over toward Edelstein to retire for good. Others packed up and had hopes of moving to the new location that the second master had selected.

The second master let out a sigh. He really wasn't into his job, but he took it responsibly. After all, if he couldn't lead the survivors to safety, who could? He still chose to believe that the power of light could save them. Especially more so since they found "that".

In the room where the Black Mage was first seen, the crystal of light was discovered. Upon finding it, the light shot up to the sky and lifted a magic power unlike any other with it. He was not sure what it was or what had happened, but he was certain of one thing: The late master was not foolish enough to part to the dark without leaving something. He was far too much of a good guy.

"I guess these wars and fightin got a bit old for the guy." The second master rubbed the back of his neck. "Seems like it's nickin away at everyone these days." The master made his rounds, checking on the health of those still in the town. None of them were foolish enough to stay behind.

The master thought to himself as he looked to the sky, "I'd hurry up with that gift of yours." He thought to himself. "We ain't gonna stick around for it forever…" He walked about to his own room.

The wall towards the main street of the town was blown completely down. On the inside, black ash charred around the edges and snuck small smudges into his living area. The bookshelves either had books laying all around them in useless stacks or shelves completely knocked over.

The master went over and picked one up. "I know the value of books. They're priceless… But I'll be damned if I am going to carry all these books at my age."

Of all the things to take with them, a priority was given to the late master's notes and memos. They felt that the best way to stop him would be to get into his head. The second thing kept would be the aurora robes. They didn't want to cause too much of a stir about their incident, so it was best to keep going as if nothing happened. Simply… a change in the master was made, and some felt the need to move on because of it.

This was the reasoning the town had agreed on.

A few more days would pass by. At this point, all that was left were those remaining to go to the new location. The elder stood at the town and looked at it. "Eh… it's almost hard to believe how nice this place was a week ago."

He sighed. "I suppose I'll take one last good stroll before wrapping the day up. Then we'll head on out tomorrow…" He started walking, looking at all the building and letting the memories of the place fill in the holes of the buildings. He could almost hear the voices of other light mages talking about the weather or some other casual talk.

It was just a shame what had happened here.

As he made his walk around, he reached the outskirts of the town and looked ahead. "Well… I guess that's that then." He sighed and looked at the sky. "I hope you do long delivery."

He was just about to make a turn and head back when a noise caught his ear. "Hmm?" He listened again. There was a shuffle in the forest area. "Huh… I wonder what could be out there…?" The master asked himself. He feared for the worst. If the late master returned to finish the job, it would surely be the end of those remaining, himself included.

He shrugged, "What's a man my age got to lose?" he walked forward and looked a bit to the left and then to the right before walking in again. "Hello?" he asked calmly.

The bushes shuffled again. It was calm and almost like it was being done unintentionally. "I can hear you." He said out loud. He took a moment to relieve himself that it wasn't the last master, but he wasn't in the clear yet…

The master walked up to the moving bush and held his hand up. "Is someone here?" He asked calmly.

"Ahhh!" A young boy flew out and ran behind a tree. "Uhh… I'm sorry, I didn't mean it!"

The master looked at the boy in shock. He was practically wearing rags. He didn't have any shoes, and yet for some reason, his hair and skin looked fairly tidy. His hair was an odd white and he looked not much older than six. "A child?" The master told himself. He began to think of where the kid could have come from, but then it dawned to him. The closest anything of civilization was at least a good five days away. "How did a child get here?"

"Ahh… W-Well…" the boy started, "I've been here awhile now!"

The master nodded, "And… where are your parents?"

The boy shook his head, "I… don't know."

"You don't know where your parents are?"

The boy shook his head can come out from behind the tree. "I saw a town so I was wondering if anyone would know me there."

The master shook his head, "Child, this is a closed door village, soon to be gone. You aren't even wearing the right clothes."

The boy sighed and looked to the ground with a pout. "…Well… Then… where's the next town?"

"Five days away." The master bluntly stated.

The boy's eyes filled with terror. "Five days?! That's a long time! I can't walk that far!"

"Exactly why I'm shocked you're here." The master thought to himself. "Tell me, child… You do not know where your parents are… where do you come from? Like a town name?"

The boy thought for a moment before shaking his head, "I don't think I know."

The master sighed. Great. Just what he needed. "Come along, kid. We'll get you dressed or something." He waved his hand over.

The master took the boy over to his house. "I do not think we have robes for kids." He stated while looking around, "But maybe I can find something." He turned to the boy, "Don't touch anything. We may be leaving, but there are still precious things here."

The boy sat in his chair and kicked his legs back and forth. As time ticked by, he found his eyes wandering and wandering. Eventually, his eyes laid on the pile of books. "Mister, why do you have books on the floor?"

"Because I'm leaving them."

"You leave books on the floor to leave them?"

The master sighed, "Yes, child. Now give me one second." The master turned around and looked through his pile of fabrics a bit longer.

After a good twenty minutes, the master dug up a small shirt that could be worn like a robe on someone his size. "Hey kid, I have something for y—"

As he turned around, he saw the kid sleeping peacefully on the chair. Not a care in the world. It was actually quite a calming sight. "Alright, at least get a blanket." The master said as he put the shirt over the kid like a blanket.

He sat down and stared at the kid. "Really, what do I do with this? We're leaving tomorrow and I can't just take him with me." He thought to himself.

The master turned around to lay down when something caught his eye. In his room, he kept the crystal that the light had shot from in a nearby sack next to his bed. For the first time, it was actually glowing in the sack. "This is… very odd." The master told himself. He took it out of the sack and looked at it. "Why is it glowing now?"

Realizing the light would probably wake the kid up, the master took a step outside, only to notice the glowing stop. "Already?" he asked himself.

He sighed and walked back in. As soon as he made it in to his room though, the light from the crystal started up. "… Is it responding to something?" The master asked. He looked around in the room. There weren't too many thing it could be responding from!

…Or was there?

"Don't tell me…" The master sighed. He walked up carefully to the boy and placed the crystal on his arm. The crystal glowed brighter than before. "So it is you…" he said calmly. He looked at the boy and moved his hands across his face, making careful observations. "Honestly, I can't stand kids… But I guess… This will do." He sighed.

The boy began to wake up from his quick nap. "Huh?" the kid sat up, "Mister?"

"Call me Master." The second master claimed, waving his hand over the shirt. "You can use this for a robe if you like. It's rather fancy."

The boy took it and slipped it on. It was a really big shirt, but it hung so long that it could easily be a dress or a robe of some sort.

"Tell me, child… Do you have a name?" The second master asked.

The boy nodded, "Yes… I'm Luminous."

"Luminous…" The master repeated. It was an odd name, but between the crystal reactions and this, he was starting to get a picture. "I see… Luminous… would you be interested in traveling with us? We're leaving tomorrow and we won't be coming back."

Luminous's face grew with horror, "Ah! I don't want to be left behind! I can't walk for five days!" He waved his hands.

The second master chuckled, "We have plenty of room."

The boy looked around nervously, "W-Well I guess that's okay… I mean… Thank you sir, I would like to go."

Smiling, the second master put a hand on Luminous's head, "Alright Luminous, we'll get you set up for our new home starting tomorrow, so sleep well. Busy day tomorrow."

Luminous watched the second master walked off through the hole in the wall and leave. He stared at the sky from his chair and smiled, "This chair is comfy!" he grinned.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day started early. The second master had gathered two of his most trusted friends in the village in a secret room…well… not secret. No one went in there anymore. Not since that night.

"I am certain you are aware of what is to happen today." He started up.

"We leave the town for good, do we not?" A second man said. He looked just as old as the second master, if not a bit older. "It's sad to see it go…"

The master shook his head, "Tragic, yes, however, I feel it is for our own good. The further away we are, the better."

"And what are we going to do about him?" The third man asked.

With a deep sigh, the master continued to his two friends. "Listen… and listen well… There are three reasons why I have gathered you two here today. I have gathered you here not out of bias, but trust! I am entrusting you with knowledge that will extend beyond this place and into our new lives."

The two friends listened carefully.

"Yesterday, I made my final walk around the town. It's still aches the heart to see what has become of this once magnificent place… but I did it as my duty as the new master." He folded his hand together, "As I was about to finish, as if it were an act of fate, I met a child."

"A child?" One busted out openly. "What on Rhinne's name is a child doing all the way ou—"

The master raised his hand up slowly, "Allow me to finish. This child was clearly lost… however, despite the nearest town being some ways away, he was perfectly clean and well kept…" He brought out a small box. He opened it up and revealed the crystal that was found by them on that day. The light was long gone, leaving a normal rock behind. "I took him back with me, and this here began to shine. Just like it shined on that day."

The two men looked at each other for a brief moment before looking at the master. "So… it responded to him?"

"Exactly. It responded to him, and given how he arrived to us, I am almost certain that this boy is the last thing our late founder gave to us."

The second one sighed, "You would think he would have left him a bit older…. A child? We're not babysitters!"

"No… No we are not. And I am not too fond of children myself." The master started up, "Annoying little buggers. But, we have little choice. I believe he was left to us for a reason. And as those whom succeeded our founder, it our duty to ensure that it survives."

"But what he's just destined to fall down the same path? They're technically one in the same!" The third snapped.

"We will face that when we get there… If it ever happens… We will monitor his every move and gesture. If any funny business starts to go on, we will stop it immediately."

The second man rubbed his face, "You're wise, old master, but I cannot help but think this is a horrid idea."

"I hear your concerns." The master waved his hand around, "But this child surely has a great destiny ahead of him if we lead him to it. If not, he will perish. "

The two remained quiet. They couldn't simply come out and say it was okay for a kid to die. Not after what their town just went through.

The master stood up from the table. "We shall take him in, raise him to be like us so he does not fall down the same path, and lead him towards his fate."

One of his friends shook their head. "What if his fate is to fall into darkness? What if that light was not meant to survive?"

"Then we shall make a miracle."

As the three of them talked, they considered the use of a light barrier. It would work well over time. It could block any and all evil out. Their home would also be hidden from the normal man. If one wanted to find them, they would have to travel far into the depths of the world which few dared to venture… or use a ritual for a convenient scroll. "They'll be useful for the citizens that already know about the place. It's fast and quick. All they will need is some materials."

After the meeting, the master walked back to return to Luminous. "Young one, we are going to leave soon. I ask that you not wander far."

Luminous looked at the master and nodded, "Okay… Uhh… Can I ask something?"

The master looked at him, "What?"

"I'm kind of hungry… Do you have anything to eat?" Luminous waved back and forth. "I feel like I haven't eaten in days."

The Master sighed and rolled his eyes. "We've little food at the moment… Let me see what I can find." He walked into his own kitchen and found a small cubby. Digging around, he found some bread. "Ahh... I bet I can throw some sugar on it and he'll eat it." He walked over to a small counter top and pulled out a small amount of sugar from a jar and sprinkled it on top of the bread. He took a deep sigh before settling down and pouring himself a cup of cold coffee that was lying nearby.

"Here you go, kid." The master said and handed him the small bit of bread. "It's sweet."

Luminous put a huge smile on his face and took a big bite. He chewed quickly and smiled again, "This is really good!"

"Ah, you think so? It's kind of old." The master rubbed his neck.

Luminous took another bite and eyed the master walking around, "What do you have there?"

The master turned and looked at Luminous, "Huh? This?" he held up his cup. "it's coffee."

"Coffee? What's that?"

"An adult drink." The master quickly stated. "Look, I'm rather busy for this afternoon, so if you can sit back long enough for me to get work done, we'll be good tonight."

Luminous blinked and nodded, going back to quietly eating his bread.

The master walked over to his luggage and pulled out a book. "Let's see… the process to create a light crystal… I'm gonna need a big one." He began to read carefully to prepare himself for the task of its creation.

Word of Luminous spread quickly. By the time lunch hit around, a few of the remaining villiagers approached the master with spare rations. "Oh he's such a young little thing." One of them said, "He probably needs more than what you probably have." Looking at how half the room was blown off. "But I honestly don't know when that boy could have possibly eaten last. The nearest town is days away."

"Thank you." The master spoke. "I will ensure he is well fed." The master turned and managed to give Luminous plenty of food for lunch.

Luminous helped himself to a nap afterwards.

The master almost found it odd watching him sleep. He had never had children and tended to avoid them. He simply wasn't much of a kid person. But Luminous seemed to make him feel a lot calmer. More at ease. Was it because of his origins? He did not know. He knew that for the first time, he felt a small desire to protect a small life. "Just stay out of trouble." He muttered quietly.

The evening rolled around. It was finally time to leave. The master walked over to Luminous. "Hey… kid… wake up… we're leaving."

Luminous woke up slightly confused. "Huh?"

"Fix your shirt. It looks awful." The second master stated. He moved down to Luminous's level and gave him help in fixing it up to look presentable. "We'll need to get you some clothes that fit better later."

Luminous followed the master to the center of the town. He was in awe about the whole place as he passed by. "Wow… there's so many houses."

"They're all empty." The master spoke to Luminous. "Luminous. I am about to perform a very sensitive ritual. I do ask that when it begins, you are quiet and stay where you are. If you are left behind, there is nothing I can do."

Luminous remained quiet and continue to follow.

At the center of town, Luminos noticed a small gathering of people. There couldn't have been any more than twenty. He was passed on to one of the master's friends as he walked forward.

"Everyone!" He started, "For the sake of our research! For the sake of our safety! We must now flee! We will flee far away! Away… from everyone. There will be no threats to us ever again. We will simply continue our research! And hope… that one day… our wrong may be corrected." He gave a small passing glance to Luminous.

The master took his personal staff and help it up high. He muttered a small chant and a light began to appear. It was an odd light. While it was bright, it seemed to make everything it touched darker. Luminous fell a bit closer in the crowd.

The master slammed his staff on to the ground, leaving nothing but a vast portal open. "Come!" he said a loud. "We make way to a new life tonight!"

Everyone started to walk in the portal slowly. Luminous followed them until he got up with the master and stayed with him. It was clear that he was scared.

"You are frightened." The master said.

"I…Is that really safe?" Luminous asked with a tremble.

"Would being here alone be any safer?" The master asked.

Luminous took a big gulp and felt the master's hand on his shoulder, giving him a small push. "Come. We will go together." He spoke in a calm tone.

The two walked in slowly. Luminous simply closed his eyes and stayed close to the master, making sure his hand was on his shoulder the whole time.

"Open your eyes…"

Luminous opened them and saw his new home. It was like it was inside of a cave. A very odd one. There was little lighting, except for the candles, and there were shelves in the wall. Like this place was designed. "Woah…"

"We found this place and built it ourselves…" The master sighed. "It's gonna tae some getting used to, but once we make that light crystal…"

"Light Crystal?" Luminous turned to the master.

"You'll see. It's rather impressive." He chuckled. "Just need the rest of the right parts. Should take about two days."

Two days was being nice. After a night of gloomy darkness, the light crystal was up. It floated magnificently in Harmony, giving a much stronger light to all the villagers… as well as added protection.

But Luminous didn't need to know about this yet.


	3. Chapter 3

The next few days were quite dull for Luminous. Everyone was busy settling in and he was not to leave Harmony. He sighed a bit and kicked his feet. "I'm bored."

"Then read a book. It will do you know harm." The master spoke sternly.

"But they're all hard. " Luminous sat up, "I can barely read them."

"You can't read?" The master dropped his pen and turned in his chair. "Surely you're joking."

Luminous shook his head, "I don't think I've ever picked a book up in my life. I can read a little, but not much."

The master rolled his eyes and turned back to his work. "Honestly… I'm supposed to raise this kid?" The master thought to himself. "You're very young child… almost an infant."

"I'm not a baby!" Luminous huffed out.

"Child, you do realize how old I am, don't you?" the Master asked bluntly.

"Uhh… old?"

"Old enough to be your grandfather… If not great grandfather! You're a baby to me." He spoke while writing things down, "_And you haven't exactly been around all too long."_ He added in his head.

A few more days of this went by and the Master realized he was at his limit. He simply had too much to do and not enough time to care for the young boy. He summoned up his two close friends once again, hoping to find a way to find a caretaker.

"I know just the man." One of them rang happily. "He has no kids on his own, but his brother has at least six. He makes quite a nice uncle from what I hear…"

The master nodded. "This is good. Tell me, which disciple do I seek?"

"The man's name is Vieren. He's not much for light magic and only knows the basics, but I can say the man has kept a heart of gold, even in these hard times…"

After the meeting, the master walked about the corridors of Harmony to seek the mage out. It became clear to him how little he knew of those around him. He knew the people by their own accomplishments, not their names! This meant that a man with little to show would be a complete stranger to him. And he had far too much pride to ask someone. He should know this!

With a heavy sigh, he continued to walk around. He spent hours upon hours simply walking around, hoping Luminous would stay out of trouble back at his place… but he had little faith on that. "I swear, you agree to protect on thing and suddenly the whole world goes against you down to the last detail." The master coughed out for a bit.

"Need some help there, fella?" A voice rang from behind. The master turned around and saw a fairly aged fellow. He had a small brown beard of his own and looked rather down and depressed, but held a cheerful tone. "Oh, you're the master! Sorry, I didn't mean to disturb. Just notice you walkin and talkin."

The master shifted his eyes to the left and to the right to see if anyone had heard his little rant from before. He calmed himself down and looked at the new man, He figured he wasn't going to get anywhere by complaining, so the least he could do was ask someone that asked first. "I seek out a fellow mage for purposes."

"Is that so? Who you looking for?" The mage asked.

"Ah, I believe my friend called him by the name… Vieren?" The master said uncomfortably.

The mage laughed, "Well… you're lookin right at him! I would have never thought I'd be needed for something considering how low I am, but okay!" He continued to laugh a bit. His sad expression seemed a bit calmer, but the master was beginning to think he just always had that expression.

"Good!" the master shouted out. "I have heard you are good with kids, are you not?"

Vieren rubbed his neck, "Ah, well, my brother has six and he started pretty young. I had to help him out a bit, so I guess you could say that… But I don't know about them teenage years. My brother owns a big farm so you can imagine where the kids went once they hit twelve."

The master waved his hand, "Teenage years are not even involved. I am going to assume you are aware of the child under my care currently, are you not?"

"Ehh, a bit? Not too much word on him, but I know he's there. I saw the rascal when we went underground."

"That is also good…" The master started up, "You see… I am a bit… busy these days. I find myself unable to care for a child of his age at all and I am not quite certain of what I should do and to learn something new at my age is…"

"You're not good with kids, are you?" Vieren laughed to himself.

"I was an only child and didn't interact with any other child until I was of ten years." The master bluntly stated. "I was always reading with my free time and studying! Luminous shows no interest in this though!"

"Not many kids do!" Vieren shook his head, "You sure we can't find his parents or something? I could always take him to a near by town and…"

The master put his hand up. He held a quick moment of debate. Tell Veiren the truth or another lie? Would the truth change his answer? He was not sure… But he couldn't risk it. He barely knew Vieren and if he went on about telling others of Luminous's origins, he could be exiled from the village by the people. "I… I have a feeling they may have been killed in a war." He said calmly.

"Killed in a war?!" Vieren's eyes went wide open. "Why do you say that?"

The master rubbed his beard, "The… first day I found him, he looked rather beat." The master slowly stalled out, "And he seemed to mutter a few things. Not too clear, but I am almost certain these are symptoms of war trauma!"

Vieren rubbed his neck again, "Aye, poor kid. So he really doesn't have anyone?"

"Do you think I would keep a child here in any doubt? He's been sitting in my dorm the entire time nagging me over every little thing!"

"Woah…" Vieren jumped back, "He's been in your room since we got here? That was about two weeks ago! I'm surprised he hasn't torn the place down yet."

"What?" The master asked, "Why would he do that?"

"He's a young boy!" Vieren started off, "He's got a lot of energy and it's probably going to smash out one day and I think a shelf or two may fall over." He laughed, "You gotta get that kid outside and active!"

The master rolled his eyes. "Honestly, do you think outside is safe? We are just simply sealed underground. The town of Aurora is above us! He could be attacked at any given moment!"

He sighed, "Yeah, but really, that kid is gonna have a really bad temper if he sits there all day."

The master shook his head, "Nonsense! Come! Meet the child yourself! He's as good temperamental as I!"

"That's not too assuring." Vieren chuckled to himself as he followed the wise master.

The two walked back into the grim room area, "Luminous. I have returned." The master spoke out loud.

Luminous peaked his head over the side ever so slightly and saw the master. "Oh!" He quickly moved back and running was heard to a far corner of the room.

The master calmly walked over to the said corner and saw Luminous putting up a ton of books that he had piled like a pyramid. "Luminous…. What is this?"

Vieren burst out laughing, "Ahaha! See! What'd I tell ya! You're lucky that's the worst he did!"

The master sighed. He was warned, fair enough, but this also proved that Vieren was in fact, perfect for the task of caring for Luminous. "I see… And You are saying this will escalate?"

"Big time."

The master walked over to Luminous and kneeled down to his eyes level.

"You're not mad, are you?" Luminous asked nervously.

"The books seem to be in fine condition, I am not mad." He sighed, " However, I would like for you to meet someone." He waived his hand over to Vieren. "This is Vieren… He will be your new care taker."

"Care taker?" Luminous asked, "Is he going to stay here?"

The master shook his head, "No, Luminous. You will stay with him. He is a resident of the village, and I will still be here." He explained carefully.

"Ah? Is this because I won't read?!" Luminous started to cry. "I promise I'll read! I promise!" He clung on to the master's robes.

"No, no! You misunderstand child." The master took a firm grip of his shoulders. "I … am not fit to raise a child like you. I really am not. Vieren on the other hand, can treat you much better than I."

Luminous was still sobbing. He didn't want to leave. He was too scared. He didn't know anyone besides the master.

Vieren walked up to Luminous kneeled down next to him as well, "Hey kiddo." He put his hand out, "You're a little scared, and that's okay, but I want to be your friend."

Luminous took a step back and turned to the pile of books and began to try reading one. "I can read. I'll just sit here and read and…!"

The master took a long sigh, "No Luminous, you cannot stay here."

Luminous was about to protest before Vieren turned to the master and whispered something in his ear. "What? Already?"

"He may like it! It may be what he needs to ease out of this!"

"It's much too soon for that…" The master scorned.

"It's that or he comes out kicking and screaming." Vieren remarked bluntly. "You choose."

The master let out a sight, "Fine. Make it short though."

Vieren got up and walked to Luminous, "Hey kid, look, you want to go outside for a bit? I don't know about the weather right now or the time, but I think you may like some open fresh air."

Luminous sunk into the corner, "But isn't it scary outside?"

"Was it scary before?" Vieren asked.

"Master was with me, so no." Luminous answered.

"Well it's the same place!" Vieren asked, "That place is still above ground! Nothing new!"

Luminous put his book down, "R-Really? We're right…" Luminous looked at the master, "Why did we move underground from our old home?"

"You will understand one day, child." The Master stated, "However, do note this… You are only and I mean ONLY permitted above ground with Vieren. I do not give you permission to go above ground on your own."

Luminous looked at the book and set it down, "I wanna see it." He told Vieren, "Can we go?"

"Of course!" Vieren clapped his hands together, "I know the way out. It's a small hole, but I'll lift the seal for a short bit. Some outside air could be good for this cave." He laughed.

Luminous followed Vieren out of the master's small room. He looked back over and over again until the master was out of his sight. "Don't worry kid." Vieren comforted him, "You'll be able to see him all the time! He's just busy, you know?"

Luminous stayed quiet the entire walk. They finally reached a giant hole in a wall. There was no one around and the area was rather dull and plain. No shelves or study around about. "Give me one second." Vieren tapped his hand on the side wall and in an instant; the dead end wall to the hole vanished and revealed a nice set of stairs. Gleaming on them was a bright sunlight that made the light crystals in the cave look dim. Luminous winced a bit before following Vieren up the stairs.

On the outside, Luminous looked around. "…Woah…" The place really had not changed at all. He had thought he would never see it again, but for now… he was overwhelmed and sat on the dirt. He didn't know where to start. He just stared at the town. "…It really is still here."

Vieren looked at Luminous and chuckled, "Come on! We can go for a short walk."

Luminous walked with Vieren carefully through the town. Vieren would talk about what buildings were what and give a small history on them. Luminous looked at everything he could. He didn't want to miss anything this time.

"And this here is…" Vieren started up.

"The master's home?" Luminous spoke out loud.

"You remember!" Vieren praised. "Good job, yes. This is his home… or… was…"

Luminous stopped and looked at Vieren, "Why did you guys move underground though? I mean… you could have stayed here, right?"

Vieren rubbed his neck a bit. He wasn't sure how to explain what happened to someone that wasn't there… much less a child… "Well… Let's see… How do I…" he kneeled down, "There are… bad people out in this world. Very bad people." Vieren pointed to himself, "People like me, came here to study good things. Things that would help people. But even when we are good people, we are still able to be affected by bad things. Bad things happen to good people, and they don't like it."

Luminous blinked for a bit. "What? Why? You're good people, shouldn't good things happen for you?"

"That's what we wanted to believe." Vieren huffed out. "We still want to believe that, but sometimes we may think we're crazy."

"You locked yourselves underground." Luminous responded.

Vieren paused for a moment and looked at Luminous's face. He then turned to the side and had a good, long laugh. "Kid, I like you. I like you a lot." He said wiping tears from his eyes.

"What? What was so funny?" Luminous asked.

Vieren shook his hand, "Nothing. We don't get too many laughs these days. Some sunshine must do us good." Vieren looked around, "Ah, this place is a mess."

Luminous continued to walk around with Vieren for about another half hour before he decided it was time to go back.

"Already?" Luminous sighed.

"We can come back." Vieren said, "But you shouldn't rush things. You could get sick." Then he pointed to the child, "Besides, you need better clothes and some shoes! I'm sure I can have someone make you something nice."

Luminous walked with Vieren back into the cave. He watched as Vieren seal off the entrance again.

"Can I learn how to do that?" Luminous asked.

"One day when you're older." Vieren patted Luminous on the head. "You have to learn the basics first!"

"Basics?" Luminous asked.

"Of magic silly! We're magic users here!" He pointed to Luminous, "And one day, you'll be one too."

Luminous stared at Vieren and smiled, "Like the master?"

"Exactly like him!" Vieren cheered.

Luminous let out a wide smile, "Oh wow, this is going to be so cool! I'll be all fancy in my robes and stuff and-!"

Vieren shook his head as the kid spoke on and on. He almost wondered if he was old enough to even start studying the basics. "I think I can get away with teaching him some rules for a while." Vieren thought to himself.

Vieren escorted Luminous to his own personal room where he set up a nice "bed" made up of the usual hammock like material and made him a small dinner of pork and mashed potatoes with a small side of bread.

Vieren noticed Luminous's eating habits. He dug right into the bread, picked a bit at the potatoes, and stared at the pork. "You don't like pork?" He asked. He knew it was a fairly cheap meat, so some were not fond of it.

Luminous shook his head, "How do you eat it?"

Vieren gave Luminous a confused glance, "Hmm? You don't know how to eat pork? What did you eat over at the master's house? Chicken? Beef? Fish?"

"Potato stew." Luminous responded.

Vieren blinked a bit, "And… what's in this stew?"

"Potatoes." Luminous answered.

"Anything else? Carrots? Onions?"

Luminous shook his head, "No… just potatoes. He puts some salt in it though. Salt and pepper."

Vieren rubbed his forehead, "Aye aye aye…." He huffed and walked next to Luminous, "Feedin a kid nothing but potatoes and keeping him indoors…" he took a knife and cut the pork into small bits. "Here…" He stabbed a piece with the fork, "You stab it like this, and eat it. Be sure to chew it first."

Luminous carefully put it in his mouth and chewed. He chewed slowly and carefully for a good while before swallowing the piece of pork. "…Oh… That wasn't too bad." He took the fork and ate another piece. "This is cool!"

Vieren nodded, "Of course it is! Kids love pork! I have a feeling you'd like a couple other things too. I just need to go and get it."

"How do you get it?" Luminous asked.

"We use powerful magic. We have these here scrolls and prisms to help us out!" He raised his hand up to Luminous's head. "I'll take you one day."

Luminous smiled a bit and ate the rest of his pork.

The two settled down into bed for the night and took time to get cozy in their beds. Luminous fell asleep almost instantly, slightly tired from their walk earlier. Vieren look at Luminous and smiled a bit before putting the blanket over him. "You rest up little fella. You got a long journey ahead of you." He said as he went into his own hammock and fell asleep for the night.


	4. Chapter 4

Vieren was quite humored with Luminous. He wanted to use magic, but the kid couldn't focus on a book for more than 2 minutes… Not even a coloring book. "Luminous, do you really feel like changing what you're doing every five minutes?"

Luminous put his jump rope down and looked at Vieren. "No… I can settle…" He huffed, "But I get bored." He put his jump rope away and pulled out some small truck toys.

"At least you put your stuff up." Vieren sighed. He had no idea how he was going to teach this kid magic. Or how anyone would. The town had taken to spoiling Luminous with as many toys and snacks as they could. Well… everyone except for the master. He was busy doing who knows what…

Ever since changing to Vieren's care, Luminous had a few new things added to his life. He was allowed to go outside of the town once a week for one hour. Vieren had to be present at all times. He was given plenty of new toys from the towns people when they returned on their trip. He could keep them as long as they did not break. He got to try a ton of new food. While he did take liking to pork, there were some foods he didn't take to fondly of. Namely most things green. However, he loved to eat sweets. Vieren had discovered Luminous had _quite_ an impressive sweet tooth. He would have to make sure he gave him small portions or else Luminous would eat until he was crying… and he would still eat.

"Alright go sit down, Luminous. I'll have your food set up in just a minute. I didn't make any greens this time, just carrots." Vieren said out loud in his small room area.

The "table" was possibly the best table in town, but it was still small. Most others used their desk, as their table was nothing more than a piece of wood on the ground. At least the two of them had theirs slightly lifted off the ground so dirt couldn't get in it.

When eating, Vieren always found Luminous's table manners odd. He ate with his mouth shut, he didn't shove his mouth… but… he always had to eat everything one at a time. He would start with the side, usually a vegetable, then eat the main course, then drink his drink. He never changed what he was eating until it was done. "Why not mash it up a little? It taste great!"

"It taste weird" Luminous responded.

"It's all going to the same place anyway, Luminous." Vieren sighed. "Alright, I'm going to clean the dishes, then make desert, so try not to fall asleep."

Luminous walked over to his chest of toys and pulled a few out. He started slamming his small robot toy on some blocks he set up to be buildings. "Oh no! The megabit is back!" he said as he pulled a doll out, "We've got to stop it before it wreck the town! Auughh—Oh" Luminous put the robot down and put all the blocks up after realizing he had already knocked them all down. "Ahhhhh!" He picked up where he had left off.

Vieren laughed a bit to himself. "Luminous, Megabot has wrecked the town three times this week, does he take a break?"

"No!" Luminous yelled, "Megabot is bad! He scares the people and makes them run away! He doesn't ever take a break!"

"Does anyone ever get hurt?" Vieren looked at Luminous carefully.

Luminous thought for a small bit. "Uhh… No…" He stalled out, "I don't think he would be mean enough to hurt people. He just wants to scare them."

Vieren chuckled. Clearly the kid had a small grasp on what a "bad person" was like. Being surrounded by people that cared for him and stayed cheerful in his presence made it a difficult concept. "_I hope you never realize what real bad is, kid." _Vieren thought to himself. "Alright, dishes are done. Let me grab some snacks and I'll be right back at the table."

Luminous nodded and started to put his toys up. "Oh… Okay."

He ran back to the table and sat down. Vieren brought a small plate of cookies with a small amount of milk. "Alright, here you go."

Luminous didn't even wait for a second to grab a cookie and start eating it. "Vieren, are you gonna eat any?"

Vieren waved his hand, "Not tonight. My teeth are actin up."

"Teeth acting up?" Luminous repeated. "How is that possible?"

"I didn't have the best of hygiene as a kid. It comes back to haunt me when I'm older." He laughed. "Alright, I have a bit of errands to run in the morning, so I may not be here when you wake up."

Luminous nodded quietly.

"Don't worry, I'm still in town, just have a few things to do. I'll try to get them done fast so I can be back for breakfast, okay?"

"Okay!" Luminous grinned.

Even though the mood in this room was cheerful, elsewhere, it was anything but. The Master was thinking long and hard about what the next step could be for Luminous. He clearly was not old enough yet to train in magic. He did not want to waste time either. Luminous was left with a grand destiny ahead of him, and the master felt that Luminous would be the only way they could ever regain any of their face back. "He's far too young…" The master stated to himself, "And if 'he' comes back, he'll sense the barrier in an instant. I'm even sure if it will hold up against someone that knows about it." He told to himself. "But what else can we do? This child is possibly the most important figure in our town, and we can't even teach him how to defend himself yet!" He threw his head against his desk and thought a bit more. "This job is stressful…" He told himself. "I should find myself a date one day."

The next day, Luminous woke up early to get some free time to play on his own. With Vieren gone, he could be as loud as he wanted. He set up a few books like tents and his regular blocks. "Oh no! Megabot is back again!" Luminous yelled out, "He's going to wreck everything again!" He started to knock over books and blocks with small noises of people yelling. He ended up having a bit too much fun and ended up knocking their table over. "Uh oh…" Luminous told himself. Around that time, Vieren walked in and saw the mess. He let out a small sigh before laughing. "I had a feeling you would pull something like this." He said in a slight despaired tone. "You didn't break the table, did you?"

Luminous shook his head quickly. Vieren walked over and inspected it. "Looks fine. Just needs to be set up again." He said as he started putting it together again. "Wanna pick up those books?"

Luminous quietly began to pick up the books carefully. He would pick two up, set them on the shelf, them run back for more. As he was busy with the books, Vieren noticed Luminous's robot toy. Its leg had snapped off. "Oh no…" He said.

"What?"Luminous asked with great fear, hoping it wasn't the table.

"Your Megabot's broken." Vieren sighed. "Here let's see if I can…" he picked it up and the leg fell off completely. "Oh…"

Luminous ran up to the toy, "Ah? Are you sure it can't be fixed?!" He said with teary eyes.

Vieren sighed. He didn't like to keep junk around the house, but this was Luminous's favorite toy. "We can't keep it around the house… it will just take up space."

Luminous began to cry, "It can just stay in the toy chest!"

Vieren rolled his eyes a bit, "Alright, how about this. I'll go and see if I can get you a new one today, alright? If I can, we toss it. Deal?"

Luminous quietly nodded.

"Let's get some breakfast first. I'm making pancakes." Vieren cheered.

Luminous's eyes glowed a bit, "With syrup?"

"Plenty of it!" Vieren chuckled.

The two sat down and enjoyed their breakfast. Vieren found a good chance to leave after Luminous fell back asleep. He woke up so early that he couldn't stay awake after breakfast.

"This is going to haunt me tonight, but…" Vieren set Luminous up in his bed. "Here you go, Luminous. Sleep tight."

Vieren made his way towards the master's dorm. He let out a slight knock and waited for a response. This was going to be silly, but in the end, if it made Luminous happy, it wouldn't be that bad.

"Yes?" The master opened the door.

"Ah, heya pal! Been awhile!" Vieren laughed out.

"Shouldn't you be watching Luminous?" The Master bluntly stated.

"Ahh, he's sleeping. Woke up a bit early and went back to sleep." Vieren confirmed, walking in. "But hey, I have a bit of a question…" He brought out the broken robot toy. "Luminous broke this and he really likes it…. Sooo… I was wondering if maybe we had any spare funds I could use? I know we're limited and we're supposed to buy books and materials with it, but even a small amount would."

The master looked at Vieren and then the toy. "How did that child break a toy like this?"

"Well… he kicked the table over with it." Vieren laughed, "I'm pretty sure he was holding it wrong or something, it's usually pretty sturdy."

The master looked at the toy and began to think about the situation. "The child… broke… a sturdy toy…" He sighed. He really didn't like it, but he couldn't muster up the ability to say no… "Give me a moment." He walked over to his desk and began to shuffle papers around. Suddenly, he stopped though. "That's it!" he snapped his finger.

"Huh? Vieren asked.

The master walked over and picked the broken robot toy up, "You said these toys are sturdy, yes? How good would they be with an upgrade?"

"Upgrade?" Vieren repeated, "I'm afraid you lost me, buddy."

"This… this could be what we need!" He snapped his fingers, "Vieren! Quick, what's a good weapon beyond magic?"

Vieren rubbed the back of his neck, "Uhh.. I dunno… swords?"

"Swords…swords, swords, swords, swords…. They make toy swords, yes?" The master asked.

"They'd be crazy not to!" Vieren answered, still not clear of where this was going.

"Good. This is good!" The master stated, "Vieren! You know how these things function to an extent! You and I are going to make a robot from this and we'll make it into a security guard!"

"WHa—what?" Vieren shook his head, "Master, you are wise, but these are toys, not living things! They can't guard us from anything!"

"Typically, no. But with a bit of magic, they can do whatever we want for them to do!"

Vieren stood speechless. "Are you really going to use good magic on toys?"

"Exactly. I'll give you the funds for a new robot for Luminous. Pick up another one for us to use and a couple of toy swords and such. Make sure they are good quality."

"Why not a real sword?" Vieren asked.

"Do you honestly trust an experiment with a real blade? If you pick up one that's good enough, it should work fine to fend off anything basic along with the barrier."

"Alright, alright." Vieren shrugged, "Jeeves, it's like we've gone to the loonies suddenly."

The day slowly went by for the Master, and Luminous, whom had woken up and ended up over at the master's house.

"What's all these weird things for?" Luminous asked.

"We're making a robot." The Master stated.

"Ah! A real one?!" Luminous gasped out in shock. He looked at the pieces again and looked back at the master, still in shock with the answer.

"Yes. A real one. It will not be a toy." The master informed the child. "So do not try to play with it. It will be much too big anyway…"

"How big is it gonna be?" Luminous asked.

"About two or three of you. Fairly large."

Luminous gasped again. He had never seen a robot that big before! "That's so cool! Is it gonna have a name or something or?"

"No name yet… We will get there when it is complete. Now Luminous, I have to focus. This is very tedious." He said turn back to the small crystal he had on his desk.

Vieren would not return until later that evening for dinner. The master was already making some of his infamous potato stew, which Vieren figured he'd just give Luminous a good desert to actually fill him up later. "Here you go, Luminous. It's the latest model, so be careful."

Luminous looked at it and jumped up and down with it, taking it to a small corner in the room and played with it.

"Did you get the parts I requested?" The master asked.

"Yes… Yes I did." Vieren said as he unloaded all of them from the bag. "I still don't see how you're going to make this work."

The Master wasted no time. He snapped his fingers and started to take a look inside of the robot toy. "Let's see what makes this thing move, shall we?" He looked carefully. He moved over to his own scraps and began to move them around similarly to the toy. "If I move this here and this here…" he muttered to himself.

Vieren ended up taking Luminous home for a short bit before returning and spending the entire night with the master as he moved back and forth between the toy and the robot. He was actually quite skilled in his movements and observations. Something that really showed Vieren why he became the master after that day. He may be foolish when it came to dealing with people, but the man was smart.

After some time, Vieren would have to leave and care for Luminous, then come back to help the master out as his assistant. It took a good three days of trial and error, but the set up was eventually completed. Although he wiring was the same in the robot, certain parts were taken out and placed in the real one. They were much too hard to replicate.

"There…" The master sighed out, "That should do the trick." He looked at it, "but it functions nothing more than a fancy decoration at the moment." He told Vieren. "We shall need…" he went to his desk and picked up another small crystal. "This."

Vieren looked at it. It seemed a bit different from the light crystals that emitted light and a soft barrier around their village. "What is it?"

"It's a special sort of magic." He started up, "It's basically meant to ensure that the robot becomes aware of what it supposed to do."

"So…" Vieren rubbed his neck, "You mean play god?"

"Not at all!" The master shook his hand, "It will not function unless given orders. Only under orders does it exercise will. And its will is bound to those orders. Simple really."

"If you say so…" Vieren said as he watched the master place the crystal in the robot.

There was a clunking noise at first… Then a thud… Then another clunk. It was followed by a small whirl sound that slammed on the dirt and…

"Greetings." The robot spoke in a mechanical voice.

"It works!" The master spoke with a cheer.

Vieren blinked. He couldn't believe his eyes! The master really brought a robot to life! From toy parts! He got up and took a good look at it. "It's… really functioning…" He said to himself.

"Awaiting name and purpose." The robot stated in a typical monotone voice.

"A name? Huh…" the master rubbed his neck, " I have a purpose but not really a name…"

Vieren looked at the robot and thought for a bit. "How about…. Sentrobo?"

"What?" The master cringed.

"You know… serenity, for peace and calm…. Robot… Sentrobo!" Vieren moved his hands trying to explain.

"It's a stupid name, but it's better than nothing." He sighed, " You are a ….. Sentrobo…. And your purpose is to protect our home town from outsiders…"

"Affirmed." The robot stated. "State location needed for guard point."

"Uhh…" The Master stalled again, "The entrance of town. Vieren, show him the way…"

Vieren nodded and stood up, "Just follow me little fella, I know the spot."

As Vieren escorted the robot out, the Master called out. "You… wouldn't mind helping build a few more of these, would you? I know the process, so I can teach you…"

Vieren rubbed his chin. "Will Luminous be okay?"

"He can bring his toys over if he wants." The master rolled his eyes. "I would prefer we get him reading soon though."

Vieren laughed, "Alright, one step at a time. I'll help you." He said before turning around and escorting the robot out.

It was a nice feeling. The sentrobo was something simple added to the town, but a few would make nice guards. He could only hope it would stay safe for a much longer period of time… hopefully long enough for Luminous to defend himself.


	5. Chapter 5

A long time went by. Vieren was getting pretty good with building the sentrobos. The first one ended up meeting a rather short fate after a short out, but the ones that preceded it became much more stable.

"It's kind of tricky." He explained to Luminous, "You'd almost forget some key parts if you didn't do it all the time."

Luminous just stared. He was assumed to be eight years of age at this time. While he still showed interest in magic, he showed little interest in reading and the prerequisites needed to start his training, so the most he could do is observe.

Vieren had a good laugh when it started to dawn on to Luminous that toys were making the sentrobos.

"Why can my robots do that?" Luminous asked.

"Magic, Luminous." Vieren patted him on the head.

"Well I wanna learn magic!" Luminous would reply back.

"Read those books!" Vieren went back to work casually. "The Master gave a clear order that you can only start once you read all of them."

"But there's ten of them, and they're all really long!"

"Maybe one day …" Vieren set some cables up on a robo he was maintaining. "You'll see the danger in magic. We can do great things with it, Luminous, but it can be just as dangerous too."

"I wouldn't be bad with magic." He huffed out. "I'd be a good guy like you and master!"

Vieren laughed, "Maybe! But anything could happen!"

Luminous directed his attention back at his toys.

Not too far away from them, the master was beginning to worry… Luminous would be of a decent age to actually settle down and read the books he assigned.

He would start to practice magic within the next coming years.

"I can't promise that 'he' won't pick anything up…" he told himself as he paced the floor. One of his friends watched on the side and listened carefully.

"We must think of something to ensure his safety when this happens!"

His friend rolled his eyes, "We've already mustered up the magic for a light barrier and created a whole new art of magic to create robots for the sake of this child." He started, "What more could we do?"

"I don't know…" The master sighed. "Honestly, I really don't. But I am not a fool. I am not going to ignore how powerful he truly is. This child is our last blessing, and I believe him to be the one that can end his… shadowed self."

The master and his friend pondered for hours… There was no magic that could rival a founder. He was much too strong on his own, and with the darkness being the only thing left, they couldn't promise limits being in his vocabulary.

"If magic cannot save us…Maybe a sword?" The Master suggested.

"Don't be mad." His friend stood up, "it'd have to be the sword that rivaled that of a god."

He sighed. "If only a god could stand up to him, where are we to turn? We don't know such a person."

The room was quiet for a long time. The two could not think of a force that could defeat or stand up to their former leader…

"What if… we could simply... freeze time when he showed up and move Luminous elsewhere?" The master asked.

"And how do you expect that? Time control is beyond average human magic…"

The Master thought, "Maybe we could find the answer in the Temple of Time?"

His friend let out a sigh, "Look… I have been with you from the start, and I agree the child needs to be safe… but what can we do? Nothing. We cannot protect him if he comes after him. Simple as that. And it's not like he will be hard to find either. He's the only child here."

"The only child…" The Master's eyes widened. "That's it!" He walked over to a map, "Tell me, how many people do we have in the town these days excluding Vieren and ourselves?"

His friend rubbed his chin, "About… twenty six, I believe? It's very small…"

"That's plenty enough." The Master spoke.

"What are you planning?" His friend asked. It seemed odd how he suddenly had a plan to work with.

"What if…" The master started, "What if we got more children in here… as a distraction from Luminous!"

"Decoys?" His friend's face cringed. "Why would you throw a child into this matter?"

"We can use orphans. There are plenty of wars going around and about, I'm sure there are plenty of children in need of a place in society."

His friend sighed. "Is that really what you want to do? Bring other kids here so they can play scapegoat for another?"

The Master looked at his friend with a heavy expression. "We're all doomed to hell anyway for giving birth to that 'monster'. What's one more thing added to my tab? If anything, they can at least be treated well here."

"Treated well? We live underground. In hiding. How can you say a child will be treated well here?"

"I will ensure the living conditions at the orphanage are undesirable…"

With a sigh, the friend bowed. "Very well… Let me know when you find one and I will set the arrangements."

The Master watched his friend leave and sat down in his chair. "I just hope it never gets to that point…"

The next two weeks dragged out for the master. He discovered some of the lowest lows of humanity, almost making him consider letting the later master win in his battle against humanity. But when he saw Vieren and Luminous talking, and thought about how those in similar relationships in the town acted… He felt it was needed for him to move forward. "There are bad people in this world, but there are good people too…" he would tell himself over and over again.

The Master finally arrived at the doorstep of an orphanage. He had decided he would only take six, even though his heart ached to save them all from the horrors that happened here.

"So you're the light guy, eh?" A lady with scrawny black hair flicked a smoke into a bucket. "I heard from some magical folks up top that you want some kids? You doin some kind of experiment?"

"No. We do not use human test subjects in that manner…" The Master spoke calmly, "I simply wish to begin teaching a new generation of our arts while we can teach."

The lady shrugged, "Eh, do what you want." She sat up, "They handed us a nice little fine, so I'm not one to complain." She walked over and opened a door, "The rascals are this way."

The Master noted her rather blunt behavior. "She's quiet rude." he muttered to himself.

The orphanage was a wreck of a place. The outside walls looked clean and tidy, but one look inside the rooms and the Master felt like the kids probably wouldn't know any difference from here and underground.

The walls inside the room were covered with patches of dirt and discoloration. Some were lucky enough to have some small slabs of wallpaper left on them, others, not so much… There was a single large mattress lying in the room, worn out and torn apart. Some of them hardly had any filling left in them. A paper thin blanket lay on top of the mattress, giving those underneath it only a hope that they could be warm.

He felt sick…. He felt sick seeing kids who had lost their families being treated this way. But…he had to ensure that their new life would be a step up… Not a step down.

They finally stopped and the master got a look at the children. They looked fairly ill… All of them did. "Hey!" the lady yelled, "All of you that are interested in leaving line up!" lady waved her hand. "Take a good look at em. They'll hold still as long as you want."

The Master walked by each other them slowly. He felt his own heart sink with every face passing by. He could only get six, but it seemed like there was closer to a hundred here…

He finished the line and sighed. He walked back up to the lady shook his head, "I will need a more efficient method of choosing…"

"Huh? You can just pick some?" The lady asked. "I just pick em up."

The master sighed, "May I suggest a raffle of sorts? I would much rather leave their fates in a greater power than my own hand."

The lady shrugged, "Fine…" She looked at the kids, "We'll be right back."

The Master followed as the girl walked to her room and found a pillow sack. She wrote down the name of every child herself. "Some of the fellas don't know how to write."

"Tell me…" The Master asked, "Why such poor conditions for children?" He looked at the lady with an earnest expression.

"Ha…" The lady laughed, "Most people ask 'why conditions at all'?" You realize this place runs off of "donations" that I find in the trash and good connections? The towns folks refuse to take any of the kids in if they're older than five, and that's only if they really want a kid. Most of them hate us because this place ups their taxes like no tomorrow."

"Their taxes? What does this place have to do with their taxes?"

"The money for this place has to go somewhere. Turns out the rich would rather see kids crammed in a building than on the streets, so they give a small total to this place. It's enough to buy some food and soap, that's about it…"

"Will it be adjusted when the children leave?" The Master asked.

"Usually is. They don't like to hand money out you know." The lady slipped the last name in the sack. "They need to have someone that can take their money away from them so they know what it feels like."

"That's rather spiteful and risky…"

"Hey, I'm just saying… if anyone ever comes around and is able to take everything from those that hold everything… Well, it'll be a happy day for me." She stood up, "Alright, you want to draw here or out there?"

The Master looked at the sack. "I will draw here." The shorter time that the kids looked at him, the better he felt.

He carefully picked out the six names….

Back outside, the kids all looked at The Master with nervous eyes. Some looked confused, others were more hopeful of leaving than others.

"Alright, I got six names here!" The lady started to read off. "If your name is called, go pack whatever you got…!" The lady took a sigh and held the paper up to her face with the names. "Charles, Katie, Lucia, Elroy, Silvia, and Jackson." She said quickly yet clearly. "You six get to go with this guy right here…"

There was mutters amoungst the kids and finally a boy not much older than Luminous ran up and looked at the master. "Do I really get to go?" He asked.

"Which one are you?" The Master asked.

"I'm Jackson!" He grinned.

"Then yes. You will be permitted."

Jackson's face brightened as he ran to his room instantly. Slowly, one by one, the rest of the kids walked forward to say their hellos. Jackson seemed to be the youngest, around Luminous's age. The eldest was Elroy, claiming he was already fourteen years of age.

The next hour was the longest hour the wise master had ever lived to see. The children were saying good bye to each other, crying, and giving out small, odd mementos… Like pebbles and sticks.

A lot of them seemed like they would miss Elroy, whom acted like some kind of big brother to them all. "I'll be back in a few months to say hello. I promise!" He comforted them all.

Once the good byes were done and all six children stood in front of the master, he waved them outside. "Come… We have much to do."

"We have to get there first, don't we?" Katie asked.

"You will soon see that 'getting somewhere' is but a simple chore for a mage." The Master smiled. He arranged the kids nicely in a circle. "Alright." he spoke a loud. "Do not move. If you leave the circle, you may be left behind, and I will not be back for a while to pick you up." He spoke as he pulled a crystal out of his robes.

The crystal glowed brightly. The kids widened their eyes as the light engulfed them. They felt their bodies go feather light for a moment and suddenly… they landed down. It was dark, but not too dark. There were crystals all around glowly softly, yet brightly.

"Woaahhh" Jackson spoke out loud. "That was cool!"

"It was something different…" Lucia muttered underneath her breath.

A small group of other adults walked up towards the children and began to look at them, one by one.

"Oh they're all so cute!" One of them cried.

"It's a good change of pace around here. Certainly one way to brighten the mood up from all the study!" Another said.

Elroy was the first to step up, "Woah, okay, the teleporting thing was cool but what's going on? Where are we?"

"You're in the hidden town of Aurora. Our studies here are prestige and coveted by most magic users. Do well here, and you will live a good life handsomely."

"Does a handsome life involve some windows?" Elroy asked.

The master looked at Elroy. Great… at he was at a decent age to be able to ask these questions. "There are reasons, but I assure you, I will permit you all outside when you begin to prove you are capable of protecting yourselves."

Elroy stayed quiet and gave a small nod.

"Now… These here will be your mentors or parents, so have you will…" The Master stated, "You may interact and find the one that you feel suits you best."

Katie looked at the Master, "So you're not in this group? Yet you picked us up?"

"You will soon learn how this group works, child. Not much of us act outside of the town…"

Jackson looked around, "Is there any other kids here?"

The master smiled, "Yes, there is another. We will be introducing you to him shortly…"

The kids looked at each other and began to talk to the adults one by one. Slowly, they began to settle in with each adult. The master took a deep breath and made a silent wish, hoping that the late master would not return until he was long gone and the kids were much stronger and wiser.

After the mentors decided on each child, they looked at the master. "Do you think we should introduce them to Luminous?" one of the adults asked.

Charles, whom had been fairly quiet, blinked a bit and looked at his mentor. "Luminous? What kind of a name is that? That doesn't even sound like a noun."

"Ah…" The master started, "What it is in a name?"

The kids shrugged. "I guess it must be normal here." Katie added on.

There was a knock on Vieren's door. "Hmm? What's up master?" Vieren asked casually.

"Please bring Luminous out for a bit. There are people I want him to meet." The Master gave a slight nod.

"Oh!" Vieren's eyes opened up, "What 'that' today?!"

"Yes. I assume you've told Luminous ahead of time as requested?"

"Ahh.. I did, but he wasn't too happy about it." Vieren sighed, "I'll let him see them first though. Maybe he'll change his mind!" Vieren cheered.

"I don't like them." Luminous huffed out bluntly. "They look funny."

"Look funny?" Lucia jumped back, "Well… We may be a little thin but…"

"We're not the ones with white old man hair." Charles stuck his tongue out.

"Master's better than you and he has white hair!" Luminous retorted back.

"He's also got age on him! You're calling yourself old? OLD MAN OLD MAN."

Luminous's eyes filled with a slight rage. he tried to shoot forward, but Vieren's strong arms caught him. "Okaaayy… Maybe this introduction didn't go as planned."

"Send them back already!" Luminous yelled, "I don't like them!"

"You're not the only one in on this, Luminous." Vieren pointed out, "Look, they alreadt have their own mentors. Like you have me! You wouldn't like to be taken away from me, would you?"

Luminous huffed. "I don't like them."

"You'll get used to them, I promise." Vieren calmly said while rubbing his head.

Jackson walked up to Luminous carefully. He kept a close eye on Luminous's actions and looked at him from head to toe.

"Do you play with markers?" Jackson asked.

"Wh-What? Why do you ask that?" Luminous nervously asked back.

"You're hair isn't just white…" Jackson said in the quiet room, "It's also got… some blue…"

"Whaaaat?" Suddenly Elroy walked over to Luminous.

Luminous stepped as close back to Vieren as possible, trying to feel safe from Elroy's height.

"I'll be… there is blue in his hair. Is that natural?" He asked.

Luminous stared and gave a slight nod.

Katie and Silvia walked up and looked at his hair next. "Wow, that's actually kind of pretty."

Luminous was practically climbing on top of Vieren's head at this point. He didn't want anyone to come close... Especially not these strangers.

Lucia walked up and looked at his hair. "It goes nicely with your eyes."

That was everyone but Charles in front of Luminous. And it was more than he could handle. He took a quick step to the side and fled as fast as he could.

Which didn't seem to impress the others. "Ahh… He's kind of slow at running." Elroy remarked quietly.

"Yeah, I think Jackson could even beat him." Lucia added on.

Vieren got up and followed. These next few months were going to be interesting to say the least…


End file.
